Cigarette lighter



Nav. 2o, 1951 A. F. REILLY CIGARETTE LIGHTER Filed D90.V 27, 1948Patented Nov. 20, 1951 CIGARETTE LIGHTER Alfred F. Reilly, NorthAttleboro, Mass., assignor to Evans Case Company, North Attleboro,Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application December 27, 1948,Serial No. 67,396

1 Claim. (Cl. 67-7.1)

The present invention relates to lighters and yparticularly cigarettelighters of the type in .which there is a reservoir containing suitableinilammable fluid, a Wick extending from the reservoir through. anorifice to the exterior, means for producing a sparkradjacent theexposed end of the wick and a movable snuffer which encloses the exposedend of the wick when not in use.

In the use of such lighters, difficulty has been experienced fromflooding. Under certain conditions the fluid contained in the reservoirflows from the exposed end of the wick, spreading over the adjacentparts of the lighter so that, when lighted, a large flame which isuncontrolled in size and shape is produced. Such a flame may singe theusers eyebrows and eyelashes and even set the hair aiire. The expulsionof fluid from the reservoir in excess of that needed for a flame of thedesiredr size wastes fluid so that the lighter has to be filled morefrequently than would otherwise be necessary. If flooding takes placewhen the lighter is not lighted, the lighting fluid tends to creep overthe surface of the parts adjacent the wick and to pass out under theedges of the snuffer where it may come in contact with the lining of thepocket or handbag or with articles contained in them.` It also Wets theflint and Wheel. Wetting the flint softens it and causes the formationof sludge which is transferred to the Wheel and prevents the productionof sparks for a considerable time afterwards. The odor of theevaporating lighting iiuid is also objectionable.

It has also been found that when the exposed end of the wick is drawn upfrom the bushing enough to produce a flame of the proper' size, there isa tendency for the wick to break down and spread out and thus to producea flame of irregular shape. This also varies the distance between thewick and the ignition mechanism in some lighters and makes ignition ofthe vapor uncertain.

To prevent evaporation and consequent waste of fluid when the lighter isnot in use, the exposed end of the wick must be completely and tightlyenclosed by the snuffel'. Fibers from the frayed end of the wick arelikely to extend under the edge of the snuifer and thus prevent thesnuffel' closing tightly. Carbon also accumulates around the wick andmay prevent tight closing of the snuffer. Consequently it has been foundnecessary to make the snuier of relatively large diameter which isunsatisfactory or even impractical, particularly with lighters of smallsize.

I have now discovered that the foregoing difficulties may be overcome toa considerable degree at least, by interposing between the inside of thebushing and the outside of the wick some device which permits thepassage of vapor from the reservoir to the outer air and supports the iexposed portion of the Wick. In practice I find that this can beaccomplished most satisfactorily by surrounding the portion of the wickin-the bushing by a tube of woven wire fabric or other foraminousmaterial which extends a short distance above the top of the bushing.While I find a tube made from woven wire most satisfactory, otherequivalent arrangements providing support for the exposed end of thewick and permitting passage of vapor from the interior to the exteriorof the reservoir adjacent the wick .may also be employed. Theconstruction embodying my invention practically eliminates iiooding andgreatly reduces the deposit of carbon on the bushing around the wick.The flame produced is steadier and more uniform. Also the wick does nottend to fray and spread out. Consequently the Vflame has a better shapeunder all conditions of use, and a smaller snuffer may be employedwithout danger that the edges of the snuer will not fit tightly.

Referring now to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a View of a lighter embodying my invention, the casing beingbroken away and certain of the parts being shown in section.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing the snuffer raised.

Fig. 3 is a View partly in section showing the upper end of the wick andthe surrounding screen tube, this View being on an enlarged scale, and

Fig. 4 is a section on line ll-ll of Fig. 3.

In the drawings the case of the lighter is indicated at ll, the closureof the filling opening at IZ, the wick at I3, the bushing at lll, thesnuifer at l5, the flint at l5, the wheel at l'l and the thumb piece atI8. The bushing It is forced into an orifice in the top face of thecasing il. rfhe wick I3 is of fiber, preferably such as is commonlyemployed in cigarette lighters and the end is enclosed in a tube i9 offoraminous material which extends from a point below the bushing I4 to apoint above the top surface of the bushing. 'I'he tube thus forms asupporting collar for the exposed end of the wick i3. In pracu tice Imake the tube l 9 of brass wire screen cloth of from -10O mesh to permitpassage of vapor from the interior of the reservoir to the outer air,but other sizes of mesh and other devices which permit vapor flow may beused.

It is found that in actual use that flooding is almost completelyeliminated;v that the craporation loss is substantially less, perhaps asmuch as twenty-five percent; and that the flame is of substantiallyuniform size from the moment when it is rst lighted, there being nolarge burst of flame followed by dying down; that carbonization on thebushing is practically eliminated, and finally that fraying andspreading of the wick is eliminated.

It is not possible to be absolutely certain why the provision of meanswhich permits the passage of Vapor from the interior of the reservoir toa point adjacent the point of ignition has so much effect on thebehavior of the lighter. I believe, however, that when no such provisionis made and when the pressure on the interior of the lighter exceedsthat of the atmosphere which may be the result of an increase intemperature or -a drop inbarometric pressure, fuel in liquid form isforced `out through the capillaries in the wick andY reaches the surfaceafter which it spreads out over adjacent surfaces of the lighter untilit evaporates or the lighter is lighted. In this case the ame spreadsover the contaminated surfaces, and the fuel burns withalargeuncontrolled and, even dangerous flame. This action which tends toexpel fluid from the interior of Y the lighter is repeated with aconsequent waste of fuel from time to time as the temperaturesurrounding the lighter or the barometric pressure changes. On theotherV hand when the lighter is provided with means adjacent the wick to,permit the escape of vapor, changes in vapor pressure Vinside thereservoir expel only small quantities of vapor and no fuel in liquidform is forced out. Since the amount of fuel composing vapor is verysmall in comparison with an egual volume of fluid in unvaporizedcondition, equalization takes place with only the loss of vapor, and theloss due to alternate expansion and contractionv of the volume in thereservoir is greatly reduced. Being in vapor form, the fuel is less aptto creep overthe adjacent surfaces so that the flame remains uniform insize and shape.

It is also possible that the conduction ofthe heat from the iiamedownward by the screen warms the liquid fuel as it approaches the flame,thereby lowering its surface tension and slowing down its ow to theflame while at the same time it promotes the evaporation of the fuelproducing Y4 more complete combustion. That this is the fact isindicated by the small amount of soot which is formed, particularly atthe tip of the flame. Any vapor which is forced out when the lighter islighted emerges at the base of the flame and is burned`and not wasted.

The foraminous tube or its equivalent holds the exposed end of the wickin definite predetermined position so that it cannot fray and spread outand the snuifer does not have to be made big enough to enclose anyfrayed ends of the wick. Since there is only a very slight tendency forcarbon to accumulate on the bushing, the edge of the snuifer contactsclosely with the bushing and Yconsequent loss by evaporation isdefinitely reduced-particularly after the lighter has been in use for aconsiderable period of time. y

I claim: Y

A cigarette lighter including in combination flint and wheel ignitingmechanism and a flame snuffer operated by Ysaid igniting mechanism, afuel reservoir, a fluid which is vaporiaable at room temperature in`said reservoir, said reservoir having a wick opening under said snuffer,a bushing in said opening upon the top peripheral surface of which saidsnuifer seats in closed position, a fibrous wick in said reservoirpassing through said bushing to the outside of said reservoir and ametal ,tube surrounding said wick and extending from the inside of saidreservoir between the outside of the wick and the inside of said bushingto a Apoint above the top surface of the bushing, said tube supportingand confining the exposed end of the wick and having vapor passagesextending lengthwise thereof, said passages permitting passage of vaporfrom the interior of the reservoir and thusequalizing the pressureinside and out of the reservoir.

ALFRED F. REILLY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis pat-ent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 51,611 Noyes Dec. 19, 1865203,373 Richmond May 7, 1878 2,423,481 Campos Nov. 17, 1944Y FOREIGNPATENTS Number Country Y Date 9,017 Great Britain of 1889 ll79,923 GreatBritain May 9, 1936

